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Ministry of Justice

What if I need an order right away?

If you are afraid for your safety

If you are afraid your spouse will take the children out of the province or you believe your safety or the safety of your children is at risk, you may need to apply for a restraining order or ask the police to request a peace bond.

Peace bonds and restraining orders are both protection orders - orders made by a judge in court (the criminal side of Provincial Court for peace bonds, and civil court - either Provincial Court or Supreme Court - for restraining orders) to help protect one person from another. Both can be enforced anywhere in BC, which means the police can arrest the person named in the order if you are in danger.

Please see our section on Keeping Your Family Safe and the booklet For Your Protection: Peace Bonds and Restraining Orders for more information on the differences between peace bonds and restraining orders, and which court you should apply to for a restraining order if you decide that is your best option.

Most often, if you are in the process of asking (or intending to ask) for a Supreme Court order determining custody, guardianship, access or support, you should also go to Supreme Court for a restraining order. In urgent cases, the judge can decide to make an order "without notice" (sometimes also called an "ex-parte" order). This is a temporary (interim) restraining order that sets certain specific conditions - such as no contact with you or your children - without any advance notice to the person named in the order.

Once you have a peace bond or restraining order in place, you should be able to safely go on with the process of obtaining a Supreme Court order for custody, access, support, etc.

Important!

A judge or master may require you to attend a judicial case conference even if you have a restraining order.

Please tell court staff if you have a restraining order, or if you are afraid that attending a judicial case conference will put your safety at risk.

If your issue - such as settling child custody or support - is urgent

If your issue is urgent but you are not afraid for your safety, once you have started a family law proceeding, the court may allow you to apply for an interlocutory (interim) order on "short notice."

That means you may be allowed to shorten the time limits for making an application (see How do I apply for an interlocutory (interim) order?), and you may not have to attend a judicial case conferences. Please ask court staff for more information about how to ask for short notice.